Cknolls

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 17, 2011 -> 03:22 PM) Were there any new ethics rules passed between those 2 points that could explain the difference? Or did Congress just get dumber? Congress-------Ethics???????---------Surely you jest?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 12, 2011 -> 06:24 PM) In 2002, no one would have asked the quesiton. Ah yes the change you can believe in. Just go away and make your million dollar speeche and eat your arugula and fade away. But yet somehow I don't think BO will fade away like Bush. He too narcissistic for that.

Gotta love the Unions: If you're a parent who accepts Medicaid payments from the State of Michigan to help support your mentally-disabled adult children, you qualify as a state employee for the purposes of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). They can now claim and receive a portion of your Medicaid in the form of union dues. Robert and Patricia Haynes live in Michigan with their two adult children, who have cerebral palsy. The state government provides the family with insurance through Medicaid, but also treats them as caregivers. For the SEIU, this makes them public employees and thus members of the union, which receives $30 out of the family's monthly Medicaid subsidy. The Michigan Quality Community Care Council (MQC3) deducts union dues on behalf of SEIU. Michigan Department of Community Health Director Olga Dazzo explained the process in to her members of her staff. "MQC3 basically runs the program for SEIU and passes the union dues from the state to the union," she wrote in an email obtained by the Mackinac Center. Initiated in 2006 under then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm, D-Mich., the plan reportedly provides the SEIU with $6 million annually in union dues deducted from those Medicaid subsidies. “We're not even home health care workers. We're just parents taking care of our kids,” Robert Haynes, a retired Detroit police officer, told the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. “Our daughter is 34 and our son is 30. They have cerebral palsy. They are basically like 6-month-olds in adult bodies. They need to be fed and they wear diapers. We could sure use that $30 a month that's being sent to the union.” According to the Mackinac Center, the theoretical public employer for whom the Haynes' work is the Michigan Quality Community Care Council (MQC3), an entity within the DCH that continues to operate, even though the state legislature has defunded it. Even the MQC3 calls the families hiring in-home health care providers "employers of providers," but these health care providers are also treated as employers of MQC3 when it comes time each month to take dues out of their Medicaid payment and send it to the SEIU. Mr. and Mrs. Haynes, of course, are both the parents (the employer) and the health care providers for their children, but they still lose money to the SEIU every month, despite having no interest in joining the union. They have been arbitrarily classified as state employees so that the union can take money from them. Gov. Rick Snyder, R-Mich., already ended a similar scheme to provide unions with new "public employees" in the area of child care. His predecessor, Gov. Jennifer Granholm, D-Mich., had classified in-home daycare providers as public employees -- a designation that forced them to pay union dues but conferred no other benefits upon them. Snyder's director of the Department of Human Services ended that program. "[We] will stop all funding and, because these providers are not state employees, will also cease collecting union dues,” DHS director Maura Corrigan said at the time. Michigan's state House has already passed a bill to prevent this sort of rent-seeking by public-sector unions, but it has stalled in the state Senate.

Italian bonds have traded with an 86 handle today. and the spread against German Bunds has reached =493bps. Anything over +500bps would trigger margin calls. Also, any spreads of +450bps over the European soveriegn AAA 10-yr benchmark would trigger a 15% margin haircut. However, margin rates currently remain unchanged.

QUOTE (Tex @ Sep 22, 2011 -> 12:54 PM) Do I understand this correctly? The city employees belong to a union? Further, this law allows city employees to accept positions with their union and continue to earn credit towards their city salaries? These guys are basically the city employees upper managers? Are they in some way connected to city workers while working these union jobs? BINGO!

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 21, 2011 -> 08:47 AM) So much for working for everyone... http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/c...0,4724416.story And neither Cullerton who was on the committee nor Daley(John) remember anything about this. Unreal.

Isn't #2 a result of #6?

QUOTE (Cknolls @ Sep 9, 2011 -> 07:01 PM) http://www.allamericanblogger.com/17271/lo...everyone-there/ His thugs are not trespassing or anything, right. His fellow thugs are not violating a court order or anything, right? Maybe he could get a job teaching phonics at at the local grammar school. Unions are awesome baby. I would love to have one of these f***tards threaten me. KELSO, Wash. – A Kelso man arrested for allegedly assaulting a guard and vandalizing a rail car at the Port of Longview was the same person who confronted a TV news crew last Thursday, police said. Ronald Stavas, 45, was arrested Monday night and booked into the Cowlitz County Jail on four felony charges: burglary in the first degree, assault in the second degree, intimidating a witness, and sabotage. At his initial appearance in Cowlitz County Superior Court Tuesday morning, bail was set at $50,000 for the crimes, which allegedly occurred on Sept. 8. Raw video: Longshoreman confronts KGW news crew A witness told police he recognized Stavas after seeing video on KGW-TV of an angry man who confronted a news crew at the Longshoremen union hall. Tension has been growing amid the union and the port, over the right to work at a new grain terminal in Washington state. Hundreds of Longshoremen stormed the Port of Longview on September 8, overpowered and held security guards, damaged railroad cars, and dumped grain that was the center of a labor dispute, according to Longview Police Chief Jim Duscha. A federal judge later ordered union protesters to stop using illegal tactics. Also arrested on Monday was Shelly Porter, 39, of Longview. She was charged with criminal trespass for allegedly blocking a train. KGW is the Portland sister station of KING 5.

In a prepared speech, The Prez. said Abe Lincoln founded the Republican Party..........Really BO?......I call B.S..........Waits for the same morons chirping about Palin/Revere to get their shorts in a knot........Crickets......

http://www.allamericanblogger.com/17271/lo...everyone-there/ His thugs are not trespassing or anything, right. His fellow thugs are not violating a court order or anything, right? Maybe he could get a job teaching phonics at at the local grammar school. Unions are awesome baby. I would love to have one of these f***tards threaten me.

And I shall wave my magic wand and pay for all the goodies. First President in history to kickoff a campaign in the House. 800 billion dollar stimulus did nothing but 450 billion dollar one will. and it will be paid for. Right. LMAO!!!!!!!!

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Sep 7, 2011 -> 03:39 PM) I'm pretty sure every one of those outlets has run headline stories on it, maybe not TP or DK but they're not really the same category as MSM. They're not running the crazy right-wing "omg! it was planned to steal ur guns!" angle, though. That is not what I was referring to. Are they covering this story? Are they running a story about the White House denying knowing about this program while the National Security team in the White House was briefed on it? Maybe if they remove their rose colored glasses, just once.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Sep 7, 2011 -> 03:25 PM) GMAFB. I honestly am not aware of the particular story you're referring to regarding guns but didn't your beloved party arm Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein in the 80s? This s*** goes both ways. You mean think progress,Msnbc,daily kos, the nation, ABC,CBS,NBC, Ny Times,Wash Post are not covering it? Shocking!

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Sep 7, 2011 -> 03:10 PM) She already wants to tax banks out of business. Ironic, after her husband destroyed the bank he ran in Mass. And they got ten million in gov't money. priceless.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 3, 2011 -> 11:43 AM) I forget what the appropriate satirical line is. Is it that we don't have enough doctors so the uninsured shouldn't be treated, or that it's too expensive to treat them, or that everyone has healthcare because they can just go to an ER? He was prescribed both an antibiotic and a painkiller and chose to get the painkiller and not the antibiotic, hence the ultimate price was paid. Ibuprofen or Tylenol would take of the pain.

The silence from the port side with respect to the fast and furious boondoggle is deafening. The media is silent as are all the Obama apologists. f***ing hilarious. Get a federal killed and nothing happens. Oh wait that's right, you get a promotion to Washington so they shut you up. Unbelievable. I love hope and change. The only that thing that changed was the color of the President.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 3, 2011 -> 07:15 PM) You'll enjoy this addendum. The most ironic thing is GM receiving over 20 billion in tax loss carry forwards. This is unheard of with a bankrupt company. They would not have turned a profit nor would they turn a profit any time in the future if they did not write off past losses against future earnings.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Aug 25, 2011 -> 09:51 AM) http://www.facebook.com/MichaelYonFanPage/...123097424378854 Reports of soldiers ordered to patrol with the chamber empty. really? Best war correspondent out there, period.

HMMM. Huge put buying in GLD monday. Once again proves that mkts don't move, they are moved. What will Ben Keynes say from Jackson Hole tomorrow? Nothing IMO. That is why we rallied 75 handles this week. There were some rather large baskets bought this week. Pump it up so it has room to fall. Beware if 1120 breaks. Moynihan saying we do not need capital earlier this week and then selling Buffet 5 billion in perpetual pfds. LOL. Buffet/Moynihan f*** the common shareholder once again. On an aside, the 10yr BAC bonds yielding 6.58% yesterday seem like a steal.....

Could a short sale ban be haeded to a mkt near you?? That is the rumor out there. Heading this way from overseas. Will only work if it is implemented in every mkt.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Aug 19, 2011 -> 06:04 PM) Well, now is the time to cash in. Gold is near an all time inflation adjusted high...and the only way to make money with gold is to sell it. Holding it costs money. I believe the avg. purchase price for the U.S reserves is under $50/oz. I thought I read it was $29.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Aug 19, 2011 -> 01:13 PM) What would they do with the gold market? Sell some reserves maybe.

I think we will see some central bank intervention coming shortly, maybe even this weekend. Be it the gold market or juse a version of QE on a global basis.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 17, 2011 -> 05:36 PM) This isn't really true, though it may be for you specifically. First, if you are using any sort of equity or SSF strategy with your options, you can absolutely lever up on the hedge treatment and go in bigger. Second, if you are trading within a firm's money, and if they are on portfolio margining, you can effectively lever using internal accounts rolling into a single broker or clearing account. So it is indeed possible - just depends on your situation, how directional you are, etc. Which is why I said you really have to have money to lever up. Pm margining requires 125k+ in an acct. And this conversation has nothing to do with trading a firm's money.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Aug 16, 2011 -> 08:31 AM) 225k for someone that KNOWS where the market is going is nothing. This is my point. It's not to say anything about your skill in understanding short term movement/swings, obviously you are very good at that. But, if you actually knew, you'd have just as easily made 225 million, and if you can't figure out how, despite "knowing" exactly where the market is going -- well then -- you ain't very good. My point isn't to attack your success or failure...it's to attack your bulls*** claim that you KNOW where the market is going. You can guess, like we all can, but you don't actually know. So stop claiming you do. I can also make a claim that with the market being up -- that it will someday go down -- and when it happens pat myself on the back and say how brilliant I am. That's not brilliant. That's obvious since historically the market has gone up and down depending on many economic factors. Watch this bold prediction : Someday...gold will go down. you do know that you cannot lever up on options, right? You actually have to pay for what you purchase, except for leaps. And they are not as liquid as the monthlies. Especially since the largest trader of these options had his position taken over by Goldman about a month ago. He was responsible for over 60 percent of the volume. Traded mostly with institutional desks. So unless a person is already wealthy your nonsense about someone should be able to 225 million is silly.